A 51-year-old man, suspected of having contracted an infectious disease, Ebola included, was admitted to the ‘Matei Bals’ National Institute of Infectious Diseases in Bucharest for further investigation, medical sources told Agerpres. The patient is currently in a special isolation unit.

The man, from Ploiesti (southern Romania), returned on July 25 from a business trip to Nigeria, Prahova Prefect Rodica Parashiv said.

The patient arrived on Sunday at the Hospital of Infectious Diseases in Ploiesti complaining of vomiting, high fever and diarrhoea; afterwards, he was taken for a complex set of medical tests to the Ploiesti Emergency County Hospital. Given his recent trip to Nigeria, the patient is suspected of having contracted an infectious disease, Ebola included.

Nigeria became the third African state, after Sierra Leone and Liberia, to declare a national emergency on Friday following the outbreak of Ebola cases in the region.

The Health Ministry announced on Sunday in a press release that the 51-year-old male patient admitted to the ‘Matei Bals’ National Institute in Bucharest is suspected of viral infection, but the etiological diagnosis is not known yet.

‘This morning, a 51-year-old adult displaying symptoms of fever, nausea, vomiting and bloody diarrhea was admitted to the Emergency Care Unit of the Ploiesti County Hospital. Given that the anamnesis revealed the patient has recently returned from Nigeria, the procedure for the patient’s isolation and transfer in special safety conditions to Prof. Dr. Matei Bals Institute of Infectious Diseases was initiated. At this moment, the patient is suspected of viral infection, but the etiological diagnosis is not known yet,’ the release reads.

The manager of the ‘Matei Bals’ Institute, Prof. PhD Adrian Streinu Cercel told Agerpres on Sunday that the patient will undergo further medical testing. If data reveal an Ebola case suspicion, samples will be sent to Frankfurt, Germany, to be confirmed, this being the only laboratory to detect Ebola in Europe.

Adrian Streinu Cercel explained that Ebola is not airborne, but it’s transmitted by direct contact with fluids and blood from the infected person, showing symptoms similar to other diseases.